Entertaining Tip: Individual-Sized Desserts

We're on a dessert kick today. We already showed you a heavy-hitting Rhubarb Fool, and now we're pushing little glasses full of chocolate mousse...

But our intentions are good! We think individual desserts that can be made ahead are a great way to give dinner guests something special without making more work for you.

Any pudding, mousse, or parfait lends itself well to being served in small glasses. You can whip it up and pour or assemble it in individual containers instead of doling it out from a big bowl at the end of the meal.

Puddings will set up faster in small portions, too. And your guests get a little taste of something that doesn't feel too overindulgent. You can also stretch one recipe into many, many servings, depending on how big your glasses. Just serve dessert in pretty shot-sized glasses or skinny champagne flutes.

This system doesn't have to be for guests, by the way. We sometimes make cobblers and puddings in small ramekins to keep ourselves from eating the entire thing at once.